https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-314-The-Chunin-Exams-Draw-to-a-Close/12558413/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-316-Is-Mu-Yue-Warm-on-the-Outside-but-Cold-on-the-Inside-/12558415/
Chapter 315: Individual Training
Chapter 315: Individual Training
"Teacher Mu Yue!" Obito called out excitedly outside Mu Yue's door.
However, after a minute passed, there was still no response from within.
Obito scratched his head, feeling puzzled. He had thought of many things before coming here. For instance, it was Saturday, and Mu Yue wouldn't be teaching at the Ninja Academy today.
"Could it be that Mu Yue Teacher slept in a little because it's the holidays?" Obito wondered to himself.
But he quickly dismissed that idea. He might be the type to do that, but Mu Yue definitely wouldn't be.
"Teacher Mu Yue, are you home?" Obito tried again, knocking on the door as he called out.
Still, there was no response after a minute had passed.
Obito turned and headed straight for the Southern Forest. If Mu Yue wasn't at home, he could definitely find her or at least one of her shadow clones in the Southern Forest.
When Obito arrived at their usual training ground in the forest, he saw Kakashi practicing his sword swings repeatedly, Might Guy performing various exercises, Itachi sealing hand signs and spitting out flames, and Rin standing before Mu Yue, listening intently.
"Ah, I mean, did you guys get up this early to look for Teacher Mu Yue right after the exam ended?" Obito stared at them, bewildered.
He had thought to secretly work hard and astonish everyone, but these people were more diligent than he was. He hadn't seen anyone when he woke up at eight, and who knew what time these people had gotten up to bring Mu Yue to the Southern Forest.
"What else would we be doing?" Kakashi exhaled lightly and replied nonchalantly.
Although Minato was his assigned mentor, Kakashi also respected Mu Yue. When it came to training in the Transparent World, Minato couldn't help much, so Kakashi intended to seek guidance from Mu Yue for the next month to master the Transparent World and prepare for the Chunin Exams.
These exams weren't particularly important to Kakashi, who was already a Chunin. However, with the upcoming promotions, he would face off against Obito and Might Guy, and he refused to lose again. He intended to make up for all his previous losses.
After all, he was a genius, and it was embarrassing to keep losing.
"It's alright, I usually get up at six anyway," Might Guy replied, maintaining his breathing technique as he hopped forward with a large stone in hand.
"Getting up at six is not normal at all! Only you, Guy, would do that," Obito quipped.
Obito then walked over to Mu Yue's side. "Teacher Mu Yue, can you help me devise a special training plan to enhance my strength so that I can defeat enemies even when my ninjutsu is countered?"
"No problem," Mu Yue nodded. "Obito, you start with the basic training for now, and I'll guide you through the steps in order."
Now that Obito had achieved Perfect Water Style Breathing, and Rin had practiced the fundamental breathing techniques for almost three months, it was time for Rin to learn the Water Style Breathing.
"Okay!" Obito gave Mu Yue and Rin a thumbs-up before beginning the basic training.
He had been learning breathing techniques for almost a year now and was already very proficient in the various training methods for his current stage.
"When using Water Style Breathing, you must not be impatient," Mu Yue reminded him. "Maintain a calm and steady mindset to maximize the power of Water Style Breathing."
Water Style Breathing was not suitable for those with a hot-tempered personality. One needed to have a tranquil and serene mindset.
After explaining some of the theory, Mu Yue began to formally teach Rin the Water Style Breathing.
As Rin had already learned the basic breathing techniques for three months, and Water Style Breathing was one of the simplest and easiest to learn, she picked it up quickly. Unlike Obito and the others, she didn't struggle with it for days. After about half an hour, Mu Yue appraised Rin, and Water Style Breathing had appeared in her skill list with a proficiency of two.
Mu Yue nodded inwardly. Rin was much luckier than Obito and the others had been at the start. Firstly, Mu Yue now had a deeper understanding of breathing techniques and more experience in teaching them. Secondly, the skill-teaching function had been upgraded, making it more effective, and with all the various buffs, this kind of progress was to be expected.
Next, Mu Yue created a shadow clone to continue guiding Rin, while her main body went over to Kakashi. Might Guy had been the first to seek her out, and she had already finished instructing him.
Sensing Mu Yue's approach, Kakashi paused his sword swings but maintained his breathing technique.
"First, tell me in detail about your experience when you first entered the Transparent World," Mu Yue said.
His Transparent World was a bonus from the Perfect Breathing technique, and it was immediately usable, so she needed to understand Kakashi's specific situation to plan his future training.
Kakashi nodded and began to recount his sensations and experiences from that day.
It had to be said that Kakashi's comprehension of the Transparent World was a typical protagonist's privilege. The extreme physical pain, his unwavering desire to protect his comrades, and finally, Kakashi's innate talent—all these factors combined to lead him to prematurely awaken to the Transparent World.
However, Mu Yue believed that this was an irreproducible miracle. Although Might Guy's physical pain and mental fortitude were no less than Kakashi's, he had not awakened to the Transparent World.
It was incredibly rare for this breathing technique to definitely awaken one's potential at the Perfect level.
"In that case, first push your body to its limit in training, and then fight against my shadow clone with the determination to kill it. Give it your all," Mu Yue said after some thought.
Since Kakashi's Transparent World was stimulated by an extreme state, she decided to test him with some extreme combat.
Mu Yue created a shadow clone to observe Kakashi while her main body went over to Obito's side.
"You want to defeat those Kiri-nin who use Water Release in the Chunin Exams, don't you?" Mu Yue asked straightforwardly.
Unless the brackets changed, Obito would likely face off against Mei Terumi in the second round of the exams.
"Yeah." Obito nodded quickly, his eyes shining with anticipation as he looked at Mu Yue.
The battle in the Forest of Death had been a tough one for him, as all those Kiri-nin were proficient in Water Release, which put him at a disadvantage.
While opponents like Kakuzu and Momochi Zabuza were manageable, even though water nature countered his fire nature, he could still win with the power of his Flame Control. Although water countered fire, if the intensity of the fire far exceeded that of the water, it could still overpower it.
However, against opponents like Mei and Kisame Hoshigaki, his fire jutsu just wasn't cutting it.
"There are two ways to deal with this," Mu Yue said after a moment's thought. "One is to undergo special training in Earth Release chakra nature transformation. On a fundamental level, earth counters water, and even learning just the Earth Style Wall could help you defend against many Water Release attacks."
With knowledge of the enemy's strengths, the simplest solution was often to counter them directly—in this case, learning Earth Release to counter their Water Release.
"And the other way?" Obito asked eagerly.
He was already familiar with the strengths and weaknesses of various jutsu from his experiences in the Forest of Death, where he had taken shelter behind Kakashi's Earth Style Wall to defend against Water Release attacks.
However, Obito felt that spending a month learning Earth Release just for those Kiri-nin was a bit of a loss. After all, nature transformation wasn't easy to learn, and his innate affinity was still Fire Release.
"The other way is to try and develop your Flame Control chakra mode and use stronger flames to counter their Water Release," Mu Yue replied.
Mu Yue felt that either choice was fine for Obito. Learning another elemental jutsu would give him more options in battle, and developing his Sharingan seal early on would increase his overall power ceiling.
"I choose the second option!" Obito said decisively after thinking for about ten seconds.
Undoubtedly, developing his Flame Control chakra mode was far more enticing than learning Earth Release.
To minimize damage to the surrounding trees, Mu Yue took Obito to the riverbank for his training.
Mu Yue began by releasing her chakra, switching from Rock Control to Flame Control and entering the Flame Control seal state.
With a mere thought, Mu Yue swiftly converted a large amount of chakra into fire-attribute chakra, causing a blazing inferno to erupt in her hand without harming her in the slightest.
Each breathing technique had its unique attributes. The Flame Control seal state granted extreme fire resistance, allowing one to directly manipulate flames without protection and avoid being burned.
Moreover, this trait wasn't limited to just one's own flames; it applied to others' as well. In gaming terms, activating the seal would greatly increase one's fire resistance.
Obito's eyes were fixed on the raging inferno in Mu Yue's hand, just half a meter away. He could clearly sense the terrifying heat emanating from the flames, far beyond what his current fire jutsu could achieve.
Obito's anticipation grew as he recalled how he had unconsciously entered the Flame Control chakra mode during his battle with the Kiri-nin. It seemed that he, too, would eventually reach Mu Yue's level of power.
Sizzle! !
The fire dragons produced a large amount of steam as they plunged into the water, filling the air with white mist.
"Fire Dragon Flame Bomb!"
Mu Yue clapped her hands, and a flame-like firestorm erupted from her mouth. The flames twisted like fire dragons, precisely avoiding the nearby Obito, turning the surrounding ground into scorched earth. This massive flame caused the white mist to disappear instantly.
Even though the flames didn't touch Obito's clothes, the terrifying heat from this close proximity caused sweat to pour down his face.
Beneath Obito's sweaty face was an expression of uncontrollable excitement. He knew these two ninjutsu well, and if he could also enter the Flame Control Chakra Mode and release such powerful fire-style ninjutsu, directly evaporating Terumi Mei's water style would not be a problem.
"This is the Flame Breathing Chakra Mode," Mu Yue explained as she exited the spotted state. "You can use fire style at will without hand seals and have super-strong resistance to flames while also increasing their power."
"Why don't you give it a try? Recall the feelings from that day and push your breathing technique to the limit."
Obito closed his eyes and began to recall. Suddenly, a Kirigakure jonin appeared and severely injured him, also hurting Yahiko Rin. Might Guy, in an effort to protect them, was knocked down repeatedly but kept getting back up. The Kirigakure jonin mocked their persistence.
As these memories flooded Obito's mind, the flames in his heart burned even brighter. Even though the Kirigakure jonin had been slain by Kakashi, Obito's inner fire remained intense because there might be similar guys in the future who would harm his companions.
"Grand Dragon Fire Jutsu!" Obito wanted to emulate Mu Yue and perform the jutsu without hand seals, but he only managed to wave his hand, producing a single stream of fire without actually using the Grand Dragon Fire.
"Fire Dragon Flame Bomb!" Obito then put his hands together to try the Fire Dragon Flame Bomb but only managed to spit out flames the size of his fists.
Obito scratched his head awkwardly. The gap was indeed a bit too large.
"You haven't entered the true Flame Breathing Chakra Mode, so you can't access all its effects," Mu Yue said as she patted Obito's hair.
Obito's Flame Breathing only had ten points of proficiency, so it would be a miracle if he could replicate Mu Yue's spots. His chakra control also wasn't sufficient.
Ultimately, the spots were an ability that would definitely awaken for those who achieved mastery in breathing techniques, and Obito's breathing technique hadn't even reached the proficient level yet. The fact that he could access a fraction of it at all was due to an extraordinarily high level of compatibility with Flame Breathing.
It wasn't surprising that Obito couldn't replicate Mu Yue's feat, especially considering that even Kakashi struggled to re-enter the Transparent World state, and he already had twenty points of proficiency in it.
Mu Yue pondered the difference and attributed it to the distinct nature of spots versus the Transparent World ability. After all, Kakashi had fully entered the Transparent World state during the battle with the Kirigakure jonin, while Obito had always only accessed an incomplete version of the spots.
Next, Mu Yue tested the effects of Obito's current incomplete spots. His fire-attribute chakra nature transformation was faster than when he was in a fully concentrated state, and his flames were stronger, with greatly improved fire resistance.
In terms of power enhancement, it comprehensively outperformed the ordinary fully concentrated state. The downside was the rapid chakra consumption; in a full-power battle, even with the Sharingan's assistance, Obito would be spent in three minutes.
"This chakra consumption is so fast!" Obito exclaimed after just a few minutes of testing, feeling as if he had gone through a half-hour battle.
"Here's what we'll do," Mu Yue suggested. "If you enter the Flame Breathing Chakra Mode, use fewer or no fire style techniques and instead attack your opponent with fire style taijutsu."
Fire style taijutsu didn't typically exist because fire style techniques directly affecting the body could easily harm the user. However, the high fire resistance of the Flame Breathing spots could solve this problem.
Additionally, the flames' high temperature and burning properties would make them extremely unpleasant to be hit by, guaranteeing their potency. It was much more efficient than releasing a fireball and then smashing it into the ground.
If fire style taijutsu couldn't solve the problem, he could then resort to using enhanced fire style techniques, which would consume a lot of chakra, to counter the water style. This way, he could prolong the battle.
Obito liked Mu Yue's plan and found the idea of fire style taijutsu quite cool.
And so, Obito's special training plan was set: primarily practicing breathing techniques and taijutsu, then combining the two to practice fire style taijutsu, adding flames to every taijutsu move.
I originally intended to write more today, but I encountered an unexpected situation. My good university buddy suffered a setback in his business and spent several hours chatting with me about it (there's a screenshot in the Q group). A lot of time was wasted, so I apologize, and I can only manage 4k words today.
(End of Chapter)
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